This invention relates to a safety seat for holding children in a constrained position against a car seat. More particularly, it relates to such a safety seat having a pouch for holding a child, and a safety belt positioned to extend around the torso of a child accommodated in the pouch.
The safety benefits of restraining devices for securing car passengers in a car during collisions and other accidents is well-known. Many states are now requiring occupants of vehicles to use seat belts while traveling.
Seat belts installed in cars by the car manufacturer are effective when used by adults but are ineffective or unsafe when used for infants or children. Various types of add-on restraining devices have been devised for use by infants or children. It is important that such devices hold the child or infant in a secure position while providing her or him sufficient support and comfort. Many child-restraining devices use specialized chairs or frames which take up a lot of room when not in use and tend to be expensive to construct and maintain.
One of the main problems with most of these devices also is that they are constructed to accommodate infants or children of a limited size range. Restraining belts are often an integral part of the device and are fixed in position, regardless of the size of the child restrained by the device. Besides not accommodating children of a wide range of sizes, the portion of the device in contact with the infant or child is not easily removed from the belts for use out of the car or for cleaning.
The present invention improves on these devices by providing a safety car seat which allows the child or infant to be held in a comfortable and safe position against the car seat. A safety seat made according to the invention may be constructed to accommodate children and infants of a wide range of sizes. Further, the safety seat can be made of soft, comfortable material which is washable and can easily be removed from the vehicle, so that the child can continue to be held in the safety seat for added warmth and protection. The seat also can be easily removed and washed by separating it from the restraining straps which hold the child to the vehicle seat back.
These and other advantages are obtained by a car safety seat made according to the present invention. Included is a pouch for holding the torso of a child. Further, the pouch has a back securable to a car seat and has a safety torso belt which extends around the pouch for holding the child securely. This torso belt is adjustable lengthwise along the pouch to accommodate the torsos of different sized individuals. The invention may also provide a second pouch positioned inside the first pouch and against the back of the first pouch so that the torso of a small child or infant supported in the second pouch is in line with the torso belt. This second pouch is compressable so that it presses against the back of the first pouch when a child occupies the first pouch.
These and additional features and advantages of the present invention will be more clearly understood from a consideration of the drawings and the following detailed description of the preferred embodiments.